Will the 506th of the 101st Airborne be on the chopping block?

[PALADIN85020]

The 506th Infantry Regiment of the 101st Airborne Division has a proud history. It had its beginnings as the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, participating in D-Day and memorialized in the "Band of Brothers" book by Stephen Ambrose and the subsequent HBO miniseries of the same name in which the men of Easy Company of the 506th were featured. It also had a distinguished history in Vietnam.

In the current administration's fervor to gut our military even further from its present strength, this proud and storied outfit finds itself on the chopping block.

I'm ticked. I'm really burned. This is a travesty, a real outrage.

John

101st seeking to save 'Band of Brothers' regiment from chopping block | Fox News

[the ringo kid]

I heard about that too. Ive known many from the Screaming Eagles and the "Double A" as well. Just another "brilliant" decision to come from the current folks in charge.

[steveno]

I'm afraid it is going to get worse. I'm just not sure what it will be

[Harrison]

The 506th traces it's linage back about 70 years. Sadly there are units that have an even more glorious and heroic linage going as far back as 1776, the Indian Wars and/or the Civil War that are on the chopping block or have already been chopped. I once served in an artillery bn. that traced it's direct linage back to the War of 1812, and had fought in every conflict since. It was chopped in the late 1990s. If you saw the unit's flag it was amazing the number of campaign streamers that were attached, and battle rings from the Civil War.

[Faulkner]

Fact of the matter is, someone with a clue needs to start chopping somewhere and if I thought the 101st AB would be part of a real measure to cut governement spending I would support it. There would have to be no sacred cows, serious cutting back needs to be made across the board.

[bishopm14]

I served in a Parachute Infantry unit in the 50x range (an actual Airborne unit, not the Air Assault crud of the current 101st). My unit was part of the original 101st, fought in the same battles, Bastogne, Market Garden, D-Day, etc. And it's been de-activated and re-activated several times since WWII. Currently it is an active unit.
It just didn't have a best selling novel and popular miniseries made about it.
As the linked article says about the 506th itself, the regiment was deactivated and reactivated a number of times in its history and moved to other locations as the Army reorganized in the post-war era.

It happens. The current 506th and 101st are so far removed from what they were in WWII (Air Assault vs Airborne for example) it really doesn't matter. The history of the unit and what they did will live on regardless.
I won't cry either way.

[handejector]

This is merely SOP for peace time when a war winds down.
It has always occured.
Matter of fact, the 506th has already had several deactivated periods in its history and has contained only one battalion at others.
We can't keep an army built up for war on active duty with no fight to fight.
Look at how many units were deactivated after WW II, Korea, and VN.
SOP.

Originally Posted by the ringo kid

I heard about that too. Ive known many from the Screaming Eagles and the "Double A" as well.

I've heard the 82nd called a lot of names, but don't remember the "Double A", and I was in the 82nd for awhile.
I could give you a lot of humorous names for both, but many would get me dinged, and most all of them are good for starting a bar fight at the right place and time.

[rwsmith]

"They'll be back"

[peyton]

The 82 Division Double A stands for the All American Division

[CAJUNLAWYER]

As far as cost cutting, my son's orders for his two week drill were cancelled recently because of lack of funds! He was point blank told by his rank that they had no money to pay and were ordered to cancell all reserve weeks. Scary

[dougb1946]

Life is change. Apparently the military is working on the assumption (at least the financial controllers) that the next wars will not require large (read "expensive") standing armies, but will be better served with well trained well armed smaller units. The initial success of our special forces in Afganistan, before we could really mobilize the heavy army, may indicate this is correct. It would be nice if the next enemy doesn't read much about our new army.

[ChuckS1]

Originally Posted by dougb1946

Life is change. Apparently the military is working on the assumption (at least the financial controllers) that the next wars will not require large (read "expensive") standing armies, but will be better served with well trained well armed smaller units. The initial success of our special forces in Afganistan, before we could really mobilize the heavy army, may indicate this is correct. It would be nice if the next enemy doesn't read much about our new army.

Three words everyone should remember, and if you can't, then Google them.

"Task Force Smith"

[PALADIN85020]

Originally Posted by ChuckS1

Three words everyone should remember, and if you can't, then Google them.

"Task Force Smith"

It's an object lesson from the Korean War in preparing for the next war with the techniques and tools of the last one, and the folly of watering down our military to the point of unpreparedness. It only gives encouragement to those who would challenge us.

John

[MaximumLawman]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't the entire division deactivated following WWII and not reactivated until after Korea? And isn't it also true that the only "Airborne" division in the Army is the 82nd, the 101st having been converted to "Air Assault" many years ago?

PS....I was told by a former 101st trooper that the 82nd's "AA" stood for "Airborne Associates". And an 82nd guy once asked "What is the screaming eagle screaming? Help!!! Help!!!" An antagonistic reference to Bastogne......

[ChuckS1]

Originally Posted by PALADIN85020

It's an object lesson from the Korean War in preparing for the next war with the techniques and tools of the last one, and the folly of watering down our military to the point of unpreparedness. It only gives encouragement to those who would challenge us.

John

The Russians and Chinese are not the Taliban. SEAL Teams are not designed to defeat tank regiments.